BP sells assets to cover up Gulf oil spill costs.

BP has agreed to sell its share of an Argentina-based oil and gas company for $7.06 billion in cash, bringing to about $21 billion its total sales of assets to help cover costs stemming from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

Shell Oil Co., the U.S. arm of the European oil giant Royal Dutch Shell PLC, has put its South Texas gas fields on the block, and a sale could fetch roughly $1 billion, people familiar with the matter said.

Jude    Maritime News     black gold, European oil giant, Gulf of Mexico oil spill, large volumes of gas, natural gas, offshore drilling, oil and gas, oil drilling, price of oil, Royal Dutch Shell, Shell Oil Co, South Texas gas fields, spill costs

WOODSIDE Petroleum makes another offshore discovery.

The Perth oil and gas company, which is driving to shore up gas for an expansion of its 12 billion $US Pluto LNG project on the Burrup Peninsula, said it had struck gas at the Remy-1 well in the WA 404-P permit.

New Zealand Oil and Gas NZO says that it will provide the balance of a short-term funding facility to its 30 percent subsidiary Pike River Coal PRC. NZ in the wake of an explosion that killed 29 miners and halted production.

COMPARED with the flotilla of oil and gas platforms in the North Sea, the waters west of the Shetland Islands are virgin territory. But as the British oil and gas industry declines production in 2009, at 2.5m barrels of oil equivalent per day, was just over half its 1999 peak the remote region has become its last frontier.

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South Korea Aims to Triple Overseas Crude

South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest crude importer, expects to more than triple production from oil and gas fields owned by its energy companies by 2019. Production may rise to 1.03 million barrels a day of oil equivalent by 2019 from 260,200 barrels a day last year, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said today in its 10-year energy and mineral policy plan.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation today announced the completion of its midstream asset sale to Williams Field Services Company, LLC a subsidiary of Williams Partners L.P. Cabot received the anticipated $150 million in proceeds.

India and Russia today signed an agreement to enhance cooperation between the two countries in the oil and gas sector that will provide an administrative framework for joint projects in this field in either country as well as third countries by companies from both countries.

Jude    Maritime News     Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation, Dana Petroleum Plc., Dmitry Medvedev, Gladstone LNG, Korea Gas Corp., Korea National Oil Corp., largest crude importer, liquefied natural gas, Manmohan Singh, Marcellus acreage, Murli Deora, oil and gas fields, oil and gas sector, Sergei Ivanovich Shmatko, South Korea, Williams Field Services Company

MAN Diesel expands to Canary Islands

MAN Diesel and Turbo’s service division, PrimeServ, has officially opened a centre in Las Palmas at the beginning of October in the Canary Islands. Despite the official opening, PrimeServ Las Palmas has been open for business since the beginning of 2010, and has been transporting guests to its new facilities aboard a catamaran powered by MAN engines to demonstrate how customers can berth vessels right in front of its premises.

Indian bulk exporters, Salgaocar and Bros. signed an agreement with Cargotec for the supply of a range of MacGregor transloading equipment for handling iron ore at the company’s new terminal in Goa, India.

Jude    Maritime News     Canary Islands, cranes, deck-conveyor system, hoppers, Indian bulk exporters, Las Palmas, MacGregor, MAN Diesel and Turbo, MAN engines, Marine Selfun, Salgaocar and Bros., Spanish customers

Ghana to Grow Economy from Oil Revenues

Ghana is to start commercial oil production next month, will use crude revenues to transform its economy, aiming to avoid the pitfalls of nations finding new resources, the finance minister said Thursday. Oil is expected to account for 6% of Ghana’s domestic revenue in the 2011 fiscal year, Finance Minister Kwabena Duffuor said while presenting next year’s budget to the parliament.

Concerns about global oil demand on Wednesday trumped a U.S. Department of Energy report that stockpiles of oil and gasoline were down last week. Crude oil for December delivery fell $1.90 to settle at $80.44 Wednesday as traders anticipated China’s pending actions to rein in inflation.

The cause of a natural gas leak which occurred on the Alba Northern platform on Nov. 17 will be fully investigated, a Chevron spokesperson said today. The spokesperson said the leak was quickly brought under control and that all 135 personnel on board at the time have been accounted for with no injuries.

Jude    Maritime News     commercial oil production, crude oil, Emergency shutdown systems, global oil demand, Health & Safety Executive, Kwabena Duffuor, natural gas leak, U.S. Department of Energy

Oil and gas sector confidence remains positive

Oil and Gas UK reported that the index fell five points to 57 between the second and third quarters of this year. However, 50 is the point on the measure at which people are more positive than negative about the industry’s outlook.

Oklahoma-based energy producer Williams Companies Inc. says it plans to spend $925 million to acquire oil fields on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota.The move to buy nearly 86,000 acres from private owners will give the company a major position in the booming Bakken shale area.

Jude    Maritime News     Bakken Shale, exploration and production, Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, oil and gas, Oil and Gas UK, oil production, Pennsylvania's Marcellus Shale area, Williams Companies Inc.

Shale gas lures oil majors

China’s top three oil majors have tapped into the shale oil and gas area as part of their moves to develop green energy. CNOOC Ltd said on Tuesday it had completed a deal with Chesapeake Energy Corp to buy a stake in a shale oil and gas project in the United States.

Vanguard Natural Resources LLC said it will buy Denbury Resources Inc.’s stake in Encore Energy Partners LP for $380 million, giving Vanguard full ownership of Encore’s general partner. Encore, an oil and natural-gas producer with proven reserves equivalent to about 43.4 million barrels of oil, rose the most in four months.

Celtic Exploration Ltd. (CLT.T) has been bolstering its land position in west-central Alberta and is earmarking more than 50% of its planned C$180 million capital spending budget for 2011 for the area. The Calgary oil and gas producer said it began purchasing large land positions in 2009 at Resthaven, Lator and Karr, collectively known as the Resthaven area, and now holds a 100% stake in 280,820 acres in the area with Triassic Montney rights

Jude    Maritime News     Calgary oil and gas, Celtic Exploration Ltd., Chesapeake Energy Corp., Cnooc Ltd., Denbury Resources Inc., Eagle Ford Shale, Eric Hagen, green energy, Lator and Karr, Lazard Capital Markets, oil and natural gas, Oil majors, Resthaven, shale oil and gas, Triassic Montney pools, United States, Vanguard Natural Resources LLC.

Ports launch Environmental Ship Index

Representatives of major European ports and leaders of the International Association of Ports and Harbors’ World Ports Climate Initiative met in London yesterday to launch the new the Environmental Ship Index (ESI). As of 1 January 2011, the ports of Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Moerdijk and Dordrecht will reward clean ocean-going vessels with discounts on their port dues. The better a ship’s score above the legal norm on the new international standard emissions, the better they will be rewarded. APM Terminals Vice President and CFO Christian Moller Laursen noted the “special opportunities” that exist for terminal operating companies in economically emerging markets, but cautioned the audience on risks also associated with such investments. “The ports industry is very much an emerging market story. In terms of container throughput, two-thirds of the global container throughput is handled in ports in emerging markets. Shipping company APL has volunteered to burn cleaner fuel in every vessel calling at the ports of New York and New Jersey. The agreement is part of a Port Authority program designed to curb emissions in New York Harbour. Under the plan, APL vessels will use low-sulphur fuel in auxiliary generators while berthed.

Jude    Maritime News     Amsterdam, Annual Port Finance International Conference, APL President, APM Terminals, British Columbia, clean ocean going vessels, Dordrecht, Environmental Ship Index, Global port, International Association of Ports and Harbors, major European ports, Moerdijk, New York Harbour, Oakland, Port of Hong Kong, ports of Los Angeles, Seattle, terminal operators, the ports of Rotterdam, Vancouver, World Ports Climate Initiative

Dockwise to build Super Vessel

Dockwise Ltd. announces that its Board of Directors has approved the commissioning of a newbuild vessel to serve the emerging demand for ocean transports of up to and above 100,000 metric tons. The decision is subject to approval by a Special General Meeting of shareholders to authorize the proposed USD 100 million rights issue to part-finance the investment. As announced in relation to the Q2 results in August 2010, Dockwise has been studying the feasibility of investing in a new semi-submersible monohull vessel, bigger than its current largest vessel, the Blue Marlin.

GE Oil & Gas’ Drilling & Production business has received two contracts totaling more than $120m from Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Ltd of South Korea, engaged in building ships and offshore structures.

Jude    Maritime News     blowout preventer, Blue Marlin, Board of Directors, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Dockwise Ltd., Drilling & Production, GE Oil & Gas, newbuild vessel, ocean transports, Odebrecht Oil & Gas, oil and gas production, Petroserv-owned drillship, semi-submersible monohull vessel, South Korea

The power of Oil.

The major oil companies are increasingly betting their futures on natural gas, with older oil fields producing less crude and newer ones either hard to reach or controlled by unfriendly nations. They are focusing more than ever on natural gas because it burns cleaner than oil and is gaining traction as a fuel for transportation. The latest move came Tuesday, when Chevron made a $4.3 billion deal to buy up natural gas fields in the Northeast.

Today Subsea 7 said the new deal is for installation of a 2.2 km (1.37 mile) pipeline bundle which involves engineering, procurement, fabrication, installation and commissioning of the new pipeline, plus associated subsea tie-ins, plus testing and commissioning of the line. Offshore installation of the bundle is due for 2011 and the tie-in work is due to be performed offshore in 2112. No further details of the deal have been disclosed but the contractor says it will reveal more about the project “…at the earliest opportunity.”

Revenue was up 497 US $ to 7.082 US $ while earnings were up 3,202 m Danish kroner to hit 10,032 m Danish kroner that reflected higher energy prices generated from wind farms. Profit after tax almost trebled, to 3,091 m Danish kroner.

Jude    Oil and Gas     Anders Eldrup, Danish kroner, Dong Energy, Fadel Gheit., higher energy prices, major oil companies, natural gas, natural gas fields, Offshore installation, oil fields, Oppenheimer & Co., Royal Dutch Shell, Subsea 7, wind farms